[RPG] Adding spells to enchanted weapons

dnd-3.5emagic-itemsspells

So, quick and simple. D&D 3.5 for relevance
Can you enchant a 1/day spell onto a pre-enchanted weapon. If so, is it a cost increase, or + increase?

Lets say I have a +3 longsword.
I go out and I put the Vanishing enchantment on it (+8000 MIC 45)
Now it's price point jumps up, but I can still put +7 enchantment "levels" on it.
Can I go and get Fireball 10 1/day (+12,000GP value according to craft item tables. 10 x 3 x 2,000 / ( 5 / 1 )) put on it and still have +7 levels of enchantment to put on or…?

Would a fighter require a UMD 30+ (20+caster level) to cast said spell or can s/he just use it as a standard action?

Best Answer

You seem to have two related but separate questions, so I'll tackle them somewhat independently.

Can I add Vanishing to an already-magic weapon; if so, what is the cost and what are the later options available?

Yes, you can add new abilities to a magic item. The cost to do so is the cost of the "new" item minus the cost of the "old" item. So, adding the Vanishing property to a magic sword would cost 8000 GP (and would take 8 days).

Since Vanishing is a straight GP cost and not an enhancement equivalent, you would still be able to add 7 enhancement "levels" (and any number of straight-GP-cost enchantments, Shadowstrike, Sizing, or Slow Burst (MIC p43), for instance).

Can I add a Use Activated spell to my sword, and how would a Fighter use it?

This is more of a "GM call" question, but the rules for an item with multiple different abilities would probably come into play:

Abilities such as an attack roll bonus or saving throw bonus and a spell-like function are not similar, and their values are simply added together to determine the cost. For items that do take up a space on a character’s body each additional power not only has no discount but instead has a 50% increase in price.

Since you're using the Use Activated or Continuous price (CL x Spell Level x 2000, divided by 5 to be 1/day), your Fighter would simply have to follow the Use Activated item activation rules. Basically, he'd have to say a word and/or wiggle the sword just so and the spell in question ("fireball", in your question) would go off. In any case, it'd probably be a standard action which may provoke an attack of opportunity (some Use Activated items do, some don't).

And, since this secondary ability is another straight GP cost, it wouldn't use any of the remaining 7 enhancement levels available.

So, your fighter could, in principle, have a +5 Brilliant Energy, Slow Burst, Sizing, Shadowtrike, Vanishing longsword that allows him to cast Fireball, True Strike, and Blur, each once per day. It would be ridiculously expensive, but it would be legal under RAW.

... any GM that let you actually build such a monstrosity should probably have his head examined, though.

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